Walk along the trails at Reedy Creek Park and you'll find a beautiful natural setting. Look closer, and you'll also find eroding creek beds, failing creek banks, and bridges in need of repair.

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Storm Water Services and the county Parks and Recreation Department are hoping to bring back 7.5 miles of Reedy Creek streams and make them environmentally healthy again. The project also includes about five acres of wetlands within and around the Reedy Creek Nature Preserve.

"The restored streams and wetlands of the Reedy Creek Nature Preserve will be enjoyed by many generations to come," said Chris Matthews, who oversees Nature Preserve and Natural Resources within Parks and Rec.

The restoration project will be funded by the City's Stream and Wetland Mitigation Bank for an estimated $5 million. The Bank enables the City to fund the restoration within watersheds where infrastructure projects unavoidably impact them. Infrastructure projects can move forward with limited cost and delays, and water quality improvement projects are strategically implemented where they are needed most.

"The Reedy Creek Stream Restoration project will improve our local environment and create opportunities for infrastructure projects like roads, light rail and utilities," said Storm Water Services Project Manager William Harris. "It's a win-win for residents and the environment. Efforts like the Reedy Creek Stream Restoration initiative are what give Charlotte a healthy environment and a competitive edge."

Preliminary design plans will be complete in the spring of 2016 and construction is expected to begin in late 2016.

The violent morning at the western North Carolina prison is the latest in a long string of incidents at prisons across the state dating back to at least last October, when four prison staff members were killed during an attempted escape at Pasquotank Correctional Institution.

The violent morning at the western North Carolina prison is the latest in a long string of incidents at prisons across the state dating back to at least last October, when four prison staff members were killed during an attempted escape at Pasquotank Correctional Institution.

(Independence High quarterback Davyne Simpson is in a local hospital after being placed in a medically induced coma. Matt Morrow, Carolina Varsity- Via Charlotte Observer)

(Independence High quarterback Davyne Simpson is in a local hospital after being placed in a medically induced coma. Matt Morrow, Carolina Varsity- Via Charlotte Observer)

Just two weeks before what would have been his first high school football game of the 2018 season, Independence High quarterback Davyne Simpson was found unconscious over the weekend and rushed to a local hospital.

Just two weeks before what would have been his first high school football game of the 2018 season, Independence High quarterback Davyne Simpson was found unconscious over the weekend and rushed to a local hospital.